Daryl S. I have 2 - 26 lb four bores. I shoot them and get a 2000 grain bullet out at 1480 ft/sec, and recoil is quite manageable. I would think a 50 lb 4 bore would be way too heavy. I realize recoil has different affects on each of us. There is definate recoil, but it is not brutal, for me anyway. Ken